Jacaranda – Los Angeles, California (May 2026)

Pardon my French, but holy shit Jacaranda is amazing, a revelation really.

We got the chance to dine tonight along with others who had dined at Jacaranda’s predecessor, the pop-up, Jaca Social Club. Jacaranda is the newest project of Coi chef (and Alta Adams co-founder) Daniel Patterson and his wife, Sarah Lewitinn Patterson. Their combined genius is expressed in both the food and the experience.

First, the food. I didn’t take enough pictures, but the photos here show two of the eleven (?) courses in the tasting menu, the soft tofu with fresh seaweeds and caviar and the asparagus with buckwheat and wheatgrass. The menu felt profoundly local, but the feeling it evoked was beyond the sum of the locally sourced ingredients (e.g. local produce, California wines, Monterey seaweed). By letting the ingredients shine through, the menu highlighted without co-opting the diversity of cultures that shape LA and California. From the fresh, homemade soft tofu and yuba, to the green almond and cherimoya, the dishes reminded me both of my childhood, eating savory tofu pudding made by my grandmother, and my recent trips to the Hollywood farmers market, where I’ve brought home (from a single trip) cherries, green almond, and cherimoya — the titular ingredients to the first dessert of the menu. Daniel and his team are able to elevate simple ingredients with discipline, precision, and refinement, while managing to maintain a humility rare to fine dining — exploration without appropriation.

The tofu was really a standout for me. So simple, but so impactful. Too often is tofu in America dismissed as a bland tasteless protein source, something to be covered up with buffalo or teriyaki source. Tofu, especially good tofu, tastes like soy — slightly vegetal, slightly nutty, with a hint of creaminess. And as it turns out, soft tofu is a brilliant accompaniment to caviar and seaweed. I’ve had many versions of this dish with a base of chawanmushi, which makes it a richer, but heavier experience. But with the delicate soft tofu instead of egg, you experience sharper clarity of the savory salinity of the caviar and seaweed.

Overall, there’s a leanness to the menu that’s both refreshing and deeply satisfying — like a fine Chablis. There’s that linearity, where the ingredients feel individually focused and direct, but collectively aligned and harmonized. In the cherry cherimoya and green almond dessert, you can taste the individual flavors of the fruit, while appreciating how they integrate to form a cohesive dish. The menu isn’t opulent. It doesn’t (like some of its peers) lean on Wagyu or lobster supplements to elevate its menu. And while the presentation is beautiful, it’s not the plating that stands out as the artistry — it’s the composition of the dishes, the food itself.

Jacaranda’s menu is a masterful expression of terroir, while still being delicious. I’ve once went to a fine dining restaurant in LA that was super impressive. It seemed to capture, across dishes, the essence of the Redwoods National Forest (with truly spectacular presentation). And by that I mean so many of the dishes tasted like tree. The difference though was, at Jacaranda, when the dish tasted like tree, it actually tasted good. What Daniel and team do so well here that I personally rarely experience in fine dining is create a menu that was both technically impressive as well as something I actually want to eat again, and again, and again.

Now, what makes Jacaranda a truly unique and special experience is the hospitality. Sarah welcomed us to Jacaranda with the same enthusiastic warmth as when she welcomed us into her home (for Jaca Social Club). When you dine at Jacaranda, you feel a sense of conviviality more akin to a longtime neighborhood joint (or kinda like Olive Garden’s “when you’re here, you’re family” except without the forced corporate cheer). The space is gorgeous and COMFORTABLE. (One of the things I struggle most with fine dining is feeling the pressure to pretend I belong in the fancy schmancy space…for 3+ hours in a really uncomfortable chair.) The decor is elegant and eclectic, with so much of Daniel’s and Sarah’s personalities shining through (there are so many Easter eggs hidden amongst the decor that made me laugh). And of course the music is expertly curated.

Thank you and congratulations to the team! I’m so excited for LA to get experience Jacaranda.

TL:DR Jacaranda provides delicious, elevated food and a genuinely welcoming space — and it’s just what LA fine dining needs.